Newark Bay Study - Passaic River Public Digital Library
Newark Bay Study - Passaic River Public Digital Library
Newark Bay Study - Passaic River Public Digital Library
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1-54<br />
analysis amenable to application to chemicals having markedly different sorption characteristics, as<br />
these differences can be readily indexed to the octanol-water partition coefficient, a readily available<br />
chemical characteristic. The parameters of the 3-phase partitioning model can be evaluated on the<br />
basis of both published sources of information, such as the recent review by Burkhard (2000), as<br />
well as site-specific data (e.g., dissolved chemical, particulate chemical, DOC and POC in the water<br />
column and sediment). While 3-phase carbon-based partitioning is not a feature of the model that is<br />
specific to <strong>Newark</strong> <strong>Bay</strong>, the fact that a previously developed model of organic carbon fluxes<br />
(HydroQual, 2001) is available for use is a distinct advantage of applying this approach to the<br />
<strong>Newark</strong> <strong>Bay</strong> study area. This model has previously been used on the SWEM Project (HydroQual<br />
Inc., 2002) and is currently in use on the nearly completed CARP project. It has undergone peer<br />
review by the scientists that are members of the Modeling Evaluation Groups (MEG) that have<br />
monitored technical progress on both of these projects.<br />
Application of the chemical fate and transport model to <strong>Newark</strong> <strong>Bay</strong> does not itself involve<br />
the need to include additional site-specific factors in the conceptual model, beyond those factors<br />
that were discussed previously with regard to the hydrodynamic and sediment transport models.<br />
Thus, the application of the fate and transport model to <strong>Newark</strong> <strong>Bay</strong> will conform to a relatively<br />
standard approach, provided that the fluid transport regime and particulate transport rates have been<br />
properly represented by the respective models. If this is achieved, then the two layer flow patterns<br />
at the northern and southern ends of <strong>Newark</strong> <strong>Bay</strong> will be expected to promote the interaction of<br />
each of the contiguous waterways with <strong>Newark</strong> <strong>Bay</strong>. Also of particular interest in this system with<br />
regard to chemical fate, is that very high rates of sedimentation are known to occur in some areas,<br />
and this has the potential to transfer relatively large quantities of chemicals to the sediments. The<br />
fact that dredging is an actively ongoing process is also expected to have significant implications to<br />
the fate and transport model analysis, as it has the potential to remove these chemicals, thereby<br />
mitigating the potential for long term interaction.<br />
The importance of burial processes has also been touched upon as a generic process that is<br />
of importance in a fate and transport model. Although Suszkowski (1978) discussed the importance<br />
of bioturbation in the context of his investigations of <strong>Newark</strong> <strong>Bay</strong>, quantitative site-specific<br />
information that can be drawn upon is limited at present. Hence, the best that can be stated is that<br />
the range in mixed layer depths for marine systems has been well established, and that a<br />
characteristic depth of about 10 cm has been determined on the basis of considerations of carbon<br />
diagenesis rates (Boudreau, 1994 and 1998). While it may be possible to make use of these concepts<br />
in the context of the carbon production model that is to be applied to this system, the efficacy of<br />
this approach is difficult to ascertain at this time. The analysis of vertical profiles of chemicals in<br />
sediments and the USACE-NY and NOAA camera work sediment profile investigations (NOAA,<br />
2001) may also be useful in assessing the depth of the mixed layer and rates of sedimentation in<br />
<strong>Newark</strong> <strong>Bay</strong>.